Category: World

Sudan atrocities are 'hallmarks of genocide', UN says17 hours agoShareSaveBarbara Plett UsherAfrica correspondentShareSaveReutersA UN fact-finding mission has determined that evidence of atrocities carried out during the siege and takeover of the Sudanese city of el-Fasher points to genocide.
The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) captured el-Fasher, located in the western region of Darfur, at the end of October after an 18-month blockade.
It was one of the most brutal chapters in Sudan's nearly three-year civil war and triggered widespread international outrage.
This is the closest the UN has come to declaring that genocide is being carried out by RSF fighters in Darfur during the current conflict. The RSF has not commented on the report but has denied previous such accusations.
“The body of evidence we collected — including the prolonged siege, starvation and denial of humanitarian assistance, followed by mass killings, rape, torture and enforced disappearance, s..

White House presses Iran to make deal, while ramping up military presence4 hours agoShareSaveMax MatzaShareSaveGetty ImagesThe White House has warned Iran would be “very wise” to make a deal with the US, amid reports that President Donald Trump is weighing fresh military action against the Islamic Republic.
Press secretary Karoline Leavitt told a news briefing that Trump was still hoping for a diplomatic resolution over Tehran's nuclear programme.
Her comments come as the US moves a second battleship into the region, and a day after progress was reported at US-Iran talks in Switzerland.
US media reported on Wednesday that Trump had discussed attack options with advisers, and that a US strike could take place as early as Saturday. Last summer the US military launched strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities.
Trump had not yet made a final decision about whether to attack and ongoing conversations were described as fluid, sources have told to the BBC's US partner CBS News.
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Martial law, protests and a president tried for insurrection: How did South Korea get here?A South Korean court is due to deliver its verdict in the insurrection trial of impeached president Yook Suk Yeol.
BBC Seoul correspondent Jake Kwon explains the tumultuous time that led to today's verdict.
11 hours agoAsiaYoon Suk YeolSouth KoreaShareSaveWatch: Singles pray to a goddess for love in BangkokA Lakshmi goddess shrine at Bangkok shopping mall has become a place where young people come to pray for love.
AsiaBBC reports from outside court after Jimmy Lai sentencingThe pro-democracy media tycoon was sentenced to 20 years in jail by the Hong Kong High Court.
AsiaAt the scene of deadly Pakistan mosque explosion At least 31 people have been killed after a suicide bomber detonated a device at a Shia mosque, according to police.
AsiaWatch: CCTV captures moment mayor hit in rocket launcher attack in the PhilippinesA mayor in the Philippines has survived a rocket launcher attack on his v..

US says 'meaningful progress' made as Ukraine talks enter second day2 hours agoShareSaveChris GrahamBBC NewsShareSaveGetty ImagesThe talks between Russia and Ukraine in Switzerland are being mediated by Steve Witkoff.US special envoy Steve Witkoff said talks between Ukraine and Russia had “brought about meaningful progress” to end the war, as both sides prepared for a second day of negotiations in Geneva on Wednesday.
However, hopes of a breakthrough remain low, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky saying it “was not fair” that US President Donald Trump keeps asking his country to compromise, adding that “peace wouldn't be achieved if victory is handed to Russia”.
US President Donald Trump has recently suggested it is up to Ukraine to ensure talks in Switzerland are successful, without mentioning Russia.
The Kremlin has not wavered from its maximalist demands for Ukrainian territory.
“President Trump's success in bringing both sides of this war together has ..

I would scream in my sleep: Women from Syria's Alawite minority tell of kidnap and rape9 hours agoShareSaveBBC News ArabicShareSaveBBCWarning: This report contains accounts of sexual assault and violence that some readers may find distressing.
Ramia was preparing for a family picnic, on a warm summer day in her village in Latakia province in western Syria, when a white car drove up, she said.
Three armed men got out, saying they were government security forces, and dragged her into the vehicle, the teenager, whose name has been changed for her safety and to protect her identity, told the BBC World Service.
The men beat her, she said, hitting her harder when she started crying and screaming.
“One of them asked if I was Sunni or Alawite. When I said Alawite, they began insulting the sect,” she added.
Ramia is one of dozens of women reported kidnapped since the fall of the dictatorship of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.
The Syrian Feminist Lobby (SFL), an advocacy group for women&#..